A man suffered life-threatening, traumatic injuries after a Metro train struck him not far from the Rockville, Maryland, station Tuesday morning.
Metro Transit police said in a tweet that the man had climbed a fence next to the Metro tracks in Montgomery County.
The train struck the man about a quarter of a mile from the Rockville station around 5:40 a.m., according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue spokesman Pete Piringer.
Firefighters rescued the man from under the train as passengers stayed on board.
“This is what we call a tactical rescue. They cut a hole in the fence, had to get down onto the track bed, and remove that person from underneath the train,” Piringer told NBC Washington.
Update* Pedestrian struck by METRO train// Rockville Metro, 250 Rockville Pike// @mcfrs Units on scene IAO of St Mary’s Church, @MCFRS_EMIHS w/ PRI 1 trauma patient struck by train// Pt removed from track and being transported pic.twitter.com/8pIRw0CJtj
— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) February 25, 2020
Authorities initially said a man was struck, then said it was a woman, then said it was a man. WTOP is looking into the contradicting statements.
Metro Transit police at 7:06 a.m. said all of the passengers have been safely taken off the train.
Metro’s Red Line trains ran on a single track between Shady Grove and Twinbrook for almost two hours during the rescue operations.
WTOP’s Andrea Cambron contributed to this report.
